Visit Ankara, Polish PM Reiterates support for Türkey's EU Bid, eased visa requirements

Turkish accession to the European Union is in the interest of Turkey and the EU alike, said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Ankara yesterday. Tusk, on the first day of an official visit at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was first received by President Abdullah Gul at the Cankaya Presidential Palace, followed by a meeting with Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Sahin. Lauding steps that bring Turkey closer to the EU, Tusk, during his meeting with Sahin, said, "We're well aware that Turkey 's accession into the EU will benefit both Turkey and the Union . I believe the ongoing accession negotiations with Turkey will gain momentum during Poland 's EU term presidency," in January-June of next year. For his part, Sahin said Turkey expects more support from Poland for overcoming what he called "superficial obstacles" along its accession path. Afterwards Tusk was given an official welcoming ceremony by Erdogan before the Prime Ministry. The two held a joint press conference following a face-to-face meeting and interdelegational talks. Stating that they had discussed easing visa requirements between the two countries, Erdogan said, "We discussed the visa issue in detail and agreed to take necessary steps towards easing the visa regime between our countries. Turkey stands ready to extend its eased visa policy with some European countries to Poland as well." Saying that in 2014 Turkey and Poland will celebrate the 600th anniversary of their bilateral relations, Erdogan said they also hope to boost the bilateral trade volume to $7 billion by then. Erdogan also thanked Tusk for Poland supporting Turkey 's EU bid. For his part, Tusk pledged to do whatever he can to change the current visa regime with Turkey, and to reduce formalities to the lowest level. This change will be realized within the limits allowed by EU regulations, Tusk said, adding, however, that the ultimate outcome of that change could be the complete elimination of visa requirements between the two countries.